Wireless communication devices include wireless access systems which provide a user device wireless access to communication services over wireless links. Wireless communication systems exchange user communications between wireless communication devices and service providers for the communication services. Communication services include voice calls, data exchange, web pages, streaming media, or text messages, among other communication services.
Wireless communication devices are located in an initial tracking area when registering and attaching to communication networks.
Upon attachment, a wireless communication device receives an Access Point Name (APN) indicating the gateway between the mobile network and another network. A Home Subscriber System (HSS) or some other database typically stores APNs. A Mobility Management Entity (MME) queries the HSS to determine the APN for the wireless communication to use for a media session. The MME then typically sends the APN to the wireless communication device over a base station indicating which packet data network gateway (P-GW) to use. The APNs may be determined based on services requested by users, such as Voice over Long Term Evolution (VoLTE), Internet Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), conversational video, real-time gaming, or some other service requested by users.
However, an APN received by the wireless communication device upon attachment may not be supported when the wireless communication device changes location. Therefore, the user device will not be able to use a previously given APN to access the network or use a specific service while located in the new area. This can lead to connection issues, such as misrouted calls when the user device assumes that a particular service is available. Unfortunately, there is no efficient or effective technique for providing a wireless communication device adequate service using a previously given APN when moving throughout different tracking areas.